The present invention relates to a product transfer unit.
In particular, the present invention relates to a unit for transferring food products, to which the following description refers purely by way of example.
Transfer units are known, which comprise a conveyor device located at the output of the product manufacturing machine and in turn comprising a conveyor belt for successively feeding the products along a conveying surface extending through a pickup station; and a pickup device located at the pickup station, and for picking up and feeding the products to a packing machine.
The pickup device of known units of the above type normally comprises a number of pickup assemblies for successively picking up the products off the conveyor device and feeding them to the packing machine, and which comprise at least one suction cup, which is brought into contact with the upper surface of the product to grip the product by suction.
Though reliable and straightforward in design, known transfer units of the above type present several drawbacks, particularly when the upper surfaces of the products present undulations or projections, in which case, it is relatively difficult to draw up the product by suction without damaging to some extent the upper surface of the product.
In an attempt to overcome the above drawback, pickup units have recently been introduced wherein the suction cups of the pickup assemblies are replaced by at least two gripping elements between which the product is gripped and clamped laterally. Even this solution, however, presents drawbacks, due to the highly delicate nature of the products, which are nevertheless still damaged superficially by the relatively strong pressure applied by the gripping elements.